Coprolalia

Coprolalia

Coprolalia is a psychiatric term referring to the excessive and uncontrollable use of foul or obscene language, including words related to feces (bowel waste). Coprolalia is a typical symptom of Tourette syndrome, a condition that has its onset in childhood and is characterized by compulsive arm movements, facial tics, grunting, groaning and shouting. Aside from coprolalia, there is often echolalia, the involuntary parrot-like repetition of a word or sentence just spoken by another person. Persons with Tourette syndrome do not usually curse out of anger or displeasure but out of uncontrollable compulsion. They cannot help themselves. (The disease is also called Gilles de la Tourette syndrome.) Coprolalia can also be a symptom of schizophrenia, a severe psychiatric disorder of thought in which the sufferer loses touch with reality, withdraws from social activity and exhibits bizarre behavior. The schizophrenic may curse for no apparent reason. (There is no known relationship between Tourette syndrome and schizophrenia.)